Funds Breathe New Life into Safe Routes to School Program

RALEIGH – North Carolina students will continue learning about how to safely walk and bicycle to school through the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Safe Routes to School Program.

The department has set aside $1.5 million of Transportation Alternative Program funds for Safe Routes to School programming. Communities can use the funds to develop creative programs that educate children and parents about safely walking and bicycling to school.

People can learn more about the program during an informational webinar on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 1 p.m. Grant proposals are being accepted here.

Proposals should be designed around collaborative programming that works to reduce the number of bicycle and pedestrian injuries and fatalities, and promotes safety through educational programming, encouragement and enforcement.

The program is 80 percent federally funded and requires a 20 percent match from participating communities. Recipients will be reimbursed for expenditures. The maximum grant amount is $150,000 per year, and participating communities must commit to a three-year agreement.

Safe Routes to School is a federal program that enables and encourages healthy transportation options for elementary and middle school-aged children to walk and bicycle to school. The SRTS program encourages a healthy and active lifestyle from an early age by facilitating the planning, development and implementation of non-infrastructure projects and activities that will improve safety and reduce traffic, fuel consumption, and air pollution near schools.